4 Things Brand people can learn from Pep Guardiola of Barcelona

"All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved." - Sun Tzu

Ahead tonight's epic clash between Arsenal and Barcelona,I rummaged through ESPN Soccernet website looking for clues on what the coaches were saying...how confident they were..or how cunning. (check Nigerian coaches, anytime they or the players go boasting about winning the tournament weeks before kicking one ball they usually crash out before the Semi-Final)

So I found this interview of Pep Guardiola, the player turned manager of Barcelona which he had given hours before the match and some instructive things emerged out of it which essentially made my spine tingle in a way only football can cause.

I saw direct relationships between the warring world of brands and the delightful, emotional world of football. I have written this note with quotes from the interview interspersed with some tips.

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Key excerpts below:

BRAND TIP No.1: HAVE A WELL DEVELOPED POINT OF VIEW BASED ON VALID EVIDENCE

BARCELONA V ARSENAL
Guardiola plays down importance of Walcott:

"Let's be clear, Walcott was not the determining factor, the determining factor was [Manuel] Almunia, who saved 12,000 balls,'' Pep Guardiola claimed. This is the mind of a Counterclaim artist who knows the value of insight which he has acquired rather than be overly swayed on the strength of one strong performance by Theo Walcott.

BRAND TIP No.2: KNOW YOUR ENEMY

"Walcott is so speedy, he has strong legs, he played very well against us (on Wednesday) and also in the last league game [against Wolves]. " - Pep

This guy watched the matches of his competition and confirmed Walcott's strength. Competitive information is often restricted to newspaper research by some of us brand people.

GAMEPLAN
"But we will try to keep the ball, that's the best way to stop Arsenal and to stop Walcott as well." - Pep

BRAND TIP No.3: KNOW YOURSELF

"We are going to try to be ourselves, TO KEEP THE BALL AND PLAY WITH GREAT INTENSITY (sic emphasis mine)

"And I think Mr Wenger will want to do the same." - Interesting that he mentions that. He acknowledges competition may likely try to play like him. Does he jettison his STRATEGY? No. Maybe he modifies the TACTICS. Does not panic at the first copycat move by competition (that is not intended at my Arsenal friends please so I can escape Facebook alive)

Knowing yourself as a brand is an irreplaceable element of building a true strategy.

And DIFFERENTIATION is one of the pillars of true brand identity, brand belief.

There is after all, only one 7up. Only 1 BMW, Only 1 Beyonce and with over 400m members, only 1 Facebook, only 1 Apple.

WHAT IS YOUR STRATEGY AS A BRAND? TACTICS WILL EVOLVE OUT OF IT. NOT TACTICS TO BE CONSIDERED BRAND STRATEGY

"We are going to try to be ourselves, TO KEEP THE BALL AND PLAY WITH GREAT INTENSITY (sic emphasis mine) "The team that has the ball most will win the game." - Pep

I like the part about INTENSITY.

That can only come when there is clearheaded-ness, single minded agreement and commitment to the brand vision. The reason for being of your brand. have you identified your brands Vision? Not Company vision - brand.

BRAND TIP No.4 : SHARED COMMITMENT

Abidal (Defender) is not afraid of Walcott, believing that pace is not the only factor which makes a winger effective.

"It may be really good for him to run 100 metres in a little over 10 seconds, but the aim is to get to the goal,'' Abidal (DEFENDER) said. "We'll wait there for him and we'll see what he can do with the ball - let's see if he can get past four defenders.'' (TACTICS to support the STRATEGY)

IS YOUR BRAND STRATEGY WELL UNDERSTOOD BY YOUR TEAM? ARE THEY COMMITTED TO IT? Do the defenders in your brand team grasp it?

"He is a very fast player. For any defender it is difficult to mark him because he can go past you. There are other ways to deal with him and you have to be ready. - Goalkeeper Victor Valdes.

Acknowledge the strengths of your competition, Know his weaknesses, Act on it. (AKA)

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Recessionary times are not receding as fast as may have been desired. Smart brands are not easily jettisoning their strategies but are seriously tweaking their tactics. They are knowing more so they can do less but the less will achieve more. Thus the need for better understanding of competition, themselves; better understanding their consumers and the new ways of engaging today's evolving consumer to achieve memorable brand contact with consumers in a display that is magical and breathtaking like today's match between dear Arsenal and Barcelona.

Viva great brands, Viva great teams.

"Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win." - Sun Tzu


Pep Guardiola - image courtesy The Telegraph www.telegraph.co.uk
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/european/championsleague/5235812/Barcelona-v-Chelsea-Pep-Guardiola-profile.html